College Golf

FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT COLLEGE GOLF - PAGE 4

- The Harper College Golf Gala is Sept. 14 at Poplar Creek Country Club in Hoffman Estates. For information on the event, which benefits the school's Educational Foundation, call 708-397-3000, ext. 2702.

One of the nation's top college golf tournaments begins Friday at Olympia Fields. The sixth annual Fighting Illini Invitational will bring together 15 top men's teams, including Illinois, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Ohio State and defending NCAA Champions Augusta State. The 54-hole event from Sept. 16-18 will have the same tee and pin locations as the 2003 U.S. Open at Olympia Fields. The tournament will feature five of college golf's top eight players, including Illinois' Luke Guthrie and defending tournament champion Peter Uihlein of Oklahoma State.

The Sports Xchange By Tom LaMarre, The Sports Xchange Tour Edge has grown from garage club maker to major player For several years after its inception in 1986, Tour Edge did a nice, little business as something of a specialty golf club company. David Glod, who played college golf at Florida Southern with Rocco Mediate and Lee Janzen before becoming a teaching pro, started the company in the garage of his condo in Warrenville, Ill. "We were a driver and fairway wood company and then we got into the iron business," said Glod, who now operates the company out of a 5,500-square-foot facility in Batavia, Ill. " ... (In the beginning)

- 20 years ago: The third annual MacMurray College Invitational Golf Tournament, played at downstate Jacksonville Country Club, was won by the University of Illinois, with a team score of 304. Northern Illinois was second with 310. Illinois Wesleyan finished at 337, MacMurray at 351.

Sam Torrance qualified Monday for the British Open, keeping alive his streak of 29 years of being eligible to play in golf's oldest championship. Torrance was among 44 players to fill out the field for the 129th British Open, which starts Thursday at St. Andrews. Also getting in was English amateur Luke Donald, who plays college golf for Northwestern. Brad Faxon was among those who failed to qualify. He planned to return to the United States in time to defend his title this week in the B.C. Open.

By A digest of coming events, compiled by Jerry Crimmins | June 1, 1997

The 11th annual Golf Day for Scholarship to benefit the McHenry County College Foundation is open to singles, partners and foursomes. The donation pays for lunch, 18 holes, cart, locker room, hors d'oeuvres and dinner. Proceeds from the College Golf Day event will pay tuition for graduates of 13 area high schools for the fall semester at the college. The event is sponsored by Wal-Mart; Camosy Inc., Waukegan; Legat Architects, Crystal Lake; and R.J. Galla Co., Grayslake. ---------- Shotgun start, noon Monday, Turnberry Country Club, 9600 Turnberry Trail, Lakewood.

In Tiger's footsteps: Tiger Woods' blowout victory at the Masters helped catapult him into the sports legend category. But before he turned pro last August and single-handedly rejuvenated the game, Woods already was a phenomenon. His winning streak hit a high point last year when, as a Stanford University freshman, he won the 1996 National Collegiate Athletic Association Golf Championship in Chattanooga, Tenn. This week Northwestern University in Evanston and Conway Farms Golf Club in Lake Forest are hosting the 100th anniversary of the same NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships that showcased Woods.

RUNNING: Olympic gold medalist Constantina Tomescu-Dita of Romania is among the elite runners who'll compete in the Oct. 12 Bank of America Chicago Marathon. It'll be her fifth race in Chicago, where she won in 2004. Kenyan William Kipsang heads the men's field. COLLEGES: Former Cincinnati quarterback Ben Mauk, who sued the NCAA after being denied a sixth season of eligibility, lost his bid for a permanent injunction allowing him to rejoin the Bearcats. ... Texas Tech assistant basketball coach Stew Robinson, who played at Indiana 1982-86, had quadruple bypass surgery.

The name has been changed, but the goals of Northwestern's annual fall college golf tournament are the same. The Oct. 10-11 event has been renamed the Windon Memorial Golf Classic after the tournament's founder, Bernie Windon. Windon, who died last December, came up with the idea of a first-class college tournament in Chicagoland. "All of us involved with the tournament know the event wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for Bernie," said Northwestern coach Jeff Mory. "This is a way for us to remember Bernie.

A fire on Saturday destroyed the Crawfordsville Country Club, which once served as "Ben-Hur" author Lew Wallace's summer home, authorities said. A neighbor who saw flames shooting from the main building called authorities, but firefighters never gained control of the blaze, said Crawfordsville Fire Chief Todd Barton. "The fire was so bad, we couldn't even get inside," he said. "It spread rapidly." In recent months the club, in a wooded area just west of the city, played host to Wabash College golf tournaments and community outings.